


You Had Better

by Shellsan



Category: Ghost Hunt
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Banter, F/M, Mai and Naru aren't together, Pining, Timeline What Timeline, but there's definitely, for Mai at least
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-30
Updated: 2020-03-30
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:54:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23393590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shellsan/pseuds/Shellsan
Summary: The one in which nothing is what it seems, and everything is what it isn’t.
Relationships: Oliver Davis/Taniyama Mai, Shibuya Kazuya/Taniyama Mai
Comments: 8
Kudos: 42





	You Had Better

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is a little bit rougher than I would have liked, but here is a gift to the wonderful Sunfire77 from the ghost hunt discord. It has been beta read by both the wonderful STL-MarieRaven and Waitingforjudgement so it's eons ahead of what I would have managed otherwise~ Happy Birthday! I hope you enjoy!

Mai sighs as she fights the urge to get up from her seat and pace around the room. Masako and John had left the room for a walk-through on their latest case and no-one has heard from them since.

That was two hours ago.

No-one has said anything, but Mai can feel the tension rising in the air.

Casting a glance in Naru’s direction, she huffs a little when he continues reading as if nothing is wrong. Even though she _knows_ he has feelings, it’s times like these that she struggles to reconcile that knowledge with the stoic man in front of her.

Stoic _teenager_ , she reminds herself. He is barely older than her.

“Hey Naru?”

The silence is broken, and Mai can feel everyone’s eyes turn towards her. There’s relief in Ayako and Bou-san’s gaze, but Naru’s doesn’t have any of those feelings. His eyes are cold and closed off; as if a wall of ice is hiding his true feelings from her.

He raises a prompting eyebrow and she doesn’t need that ice wall to melt in order to know what he wants. _‘Well? What is it?’_ he was asking.

She huffs again. “Masako-san and John-san have been gone for a while; don’t you think?”

There’s confusion in his eyes but his words don’t match. “And what does that matter? This is a rather large house, Mai. Perhaps Hara-san is doing her best to do her job.” The unsaid jab of _‘unlike you,’_ is clear.

Gritting her teeth, Mai takes a deep breath. He’s clearly trying to wind her up. “Big house or not, it shouldn’t take over _two hours_ ,” she argues.

Looking over at the doors, her fingers reached for the hem of her shirt, the feeling of fabric between her fingers calming her somewhat. “Don’t you think someone should go and check on them?”

She senses more than sees Naru’s eyes narrowing before a sigh escapes his lips. “Lin, have you got eyes on Hara-san and John on the screens?”

There’s the sound of clicking fingers before Lin replies, “Camera seven has her insight with John. She appears to be speaking with him over something.”

Looking over at Lin and then back to Naru, Mai fights the urge to argue further when she sees the look he’s shooting at her.

The rising tension from Ayako and Bou-san is gone, but something still doesn’t feel right.

Something is _wrong_.

“I’m just going to go and check on them-” she starts.

“No.”

Freezing in place, Mai turns to look at him. There’s a feeling of anger rising, but she fights it down. “Why not?”

Ah, another of her _favourite_ looks. The one that said she’s an idiot without having to actually _say_ it. “Because knowing you, you’d get halfway there and find yourself in trouble.”

“But-”

“Mai.” Stern, firm, unwavering.

Letting it go, Mai falls back onto her seat (or rather, the seat she’d claimed on their first day here). Agitated, she picks up a file from the coffee table in front of her. She’d already read it seven times – could practically recite it – but they haven’t had anything for the last day to go on, so this is the best distraction she has.

Time ticks on before Ayako rises from her seat, Bou-san following suit.

Masako and John haven’t returned.

“I’m going to go and get the Princess and John. I know we’re not exactly swamped with work, but three hours is pushing it,” Ayako declares.

Bou-san rolled his eyes, but Mai can tell that he’s worried. He hasn’t even taken the chance to comment on Ayako’s own work ethic.

Interestingly, Naru doesn’t even bother to try and stop _them_ from leaving, she can’t help but notice with some envy. Just once, she wishes she isn’t such a trouble magnet.

The alarm bells are still ringing in the back of her mind and the twisty feeling in her stomach is telling her that maybe _she_ isn’t the trouble magnet this time, but she promptly slams that out of her mind.

Staring blankly at the file still laid out on her lap, Mai tries to consider what she knows about this case. The house is relatively new, only built three years prior, and it’s owned by a middle-aged couple. They don’t have any children and they run a small independent ramen shop in Akihabara.

They’d reported that sometimes they heard creaking noises in the night and that sometimes the rooms would get cold without warning and Naru had been ready to send them on their way – mostly likely leaving Mai to explain that it was probably just a draft and the result of the cold weather warping the infrastructure.

But then they’d continued. Sometimes, Yuuri would find herself losing time, unable to remember what had happened. She’d explained that she’d end up in their guest bedroom and her husband, Ryuu, would find her hours later just staring out the window. Sometimes, she’d be in the room and the floor would be covered in drawings made with permanent markers. They’d tried getting rid of the markers, Yuuri had explained, but no matter what, they always seemed to appear again just in time for the weird things to reoccur. Then Ryuu started losing time as well. Only he wouldn’t come back to drawings all over the floor. He’d return to himself with books ripped to shreds. The books didn’t seem to have any connection – some were classic romance novels, some were cookbooks.

Mai had watched Naru’s interest perk and knew before the words had left his mouth that he was taking the case.

That had been a day and a half ago.

Nearly two days, she notes blandly when she spots the clock on the wall that telling her it was now five in the evening.

“I wonder what’s taking Ayako-san and Bou-san so long?” she muses.

“Matsuzaki-san and Takigawa-san are both currently conversing with Hara-san and John-san. They haven’t moved since they arrived there,” Lin explains, unprompted.

With Lin it’s hard to tell whether he’s bothered by her questions or if he’s happy to supply her with the information. Possibly both, she considers, before her brain catches on to what he’s just said.

“They haven’t moved?”

She can almost sense the sigh Lin releases. “That _is_ what I said.”

Yikes, maybe she _can_ tell the difference.

Glancing over at Naru, she struggles against the look he’s giving her, almost as if he’s waiting for her to make her move.

Swallowing against the rising panic she’s feeling, Mai carefully gets up from her seat, almost as if moving too quickly would spook Naru and Lin into stopping her. “I’m just going to-”

“Mai.”

This time, she can’t fight down her irritation. “Naru, something’s _wrong_. You can’t sit there and tell me that it makes sense for them to be standing there talking in the same place for so long. Whatever’s going on, sitting around here isn’t going to help them and I’m done waiting for any more proof!”

“Mai.”

“No, I’m going!”

She doesn’t bother waiting to hear what other protests he might offer her before bolting out the door.

At least she knew for a fact Naru is out of shape and that his running ability has always been far below hers.

(In the back of her mind there’s a comment from Bou-san on how no-one could run as fast as her, but she pushes it away. Now is not the time.)

Bounding up the stairs towards camera seven, she notes with some dawning horror, that camera seven is the camera watching the hallway at the guest room.

That same guest room that their clients have been ending up in without any memory.

Cursing how long she’d let herself sit there, Mai can’t help but pray that Kami-sama will take pity on them and help them to remain unhurt.

She can hear Naru in the distance, his own footsteps much slower but with just as much purpose and finds herself momentarily distracted. Foot catching on the edge of the rug that spans the upstairs hall, she stumbles for a moment before catching herself.

Eyes rising from the ground, she frowns when she realizes that none of her friends are there. Stepping closer to the guest room, she peers in, frowning when they’re still nowhere to be seen.

Without turning around, she realises that Naru has managed to catch up to her. There’s a distinct feeling of displeasure rolling off of him even as he places a gentle hand on her shoulder.

Turning to look at him, she swallows against the nervous shouts that are trying to crawl out her throat.

“What’s going on, Naru?” she asks, voice soft; desperate.

“I don’t know.” That doesn’t sound right – or true. “But we aren’t going to figure it out standing here. Let’s just go back to base-”

“No.”

Cold eyes narrow, but Mai stands her ground.

“I did what you said and now everyone’s missing. If we go back to base, you’re going to tell me that they probably just went to check on something else. Lin will say something to back you up and then we’ll be back at point one again.”

“If I promise that we’ll discuss this properly, will you return to base already?”

There’s something urgent in the way that Naru’s looking at her. He sounds almost as desperate as she feels. But that doesn’t make any sense.

His eyes are boring into hers and finally, Mai nods. “Okay.”

The coldness in Naru’s eyes doesn’t fade, but his shoulders fall slightly, and his lips twitch just the wrong side of a smirk, so Mai’s positive he’s relieved about something.

But _what?_

This is the same question that she’s still puzzling over as she makes her way back down the stairs – this time at a much more sedated pace.

It’s silent between them and Mai has to fight the urge to hum a song or something to break it. There isn’t necessarily anything disconcerting about it – in fact, this is quite normal for the two of them. Despite what the team might think, she is capable of being quiet sometimes, and she doesn’t spend every hour of every afternoon arguing with Naru.

But even still, something feels distinctly _off_. This entire day has felt _wrong_. Nothing is making sense and just the thought of it is making her agitation rise again.

How many times is that in one day? Surely this isn’t healthy for her. Then again, her friends would say that this is what she gets for working with a bunch of _ghost hunters_. She can almost hear Keiko ask her if she’d been expecting sunshine and rainbows, instead of terrifying ghosts and unnatural experiences.

(To be fair, if someone actually asked that question, she isn’t sure if she’d be able to answer it. Mai herself, hadn’t known what she’d been expecting.)

“Mai.”

How many times has Naru said her name today? Is it more often than usual, or is this normal and she’s only just now noticing it? She’s also only now noticing the way it makes butterflies form in her stomach. No-one says her name like Naru does. There’s something almost – fond? – in the exasperated tone he always uses. Almost like he _likes_ her. Not romantically – that she’d never dream of –but… but more in a friend’s kind of way.

“Mai.”

This time is less fond and decidedly less nice to hear, four out of ten. Not even average. Which is odd. Naru’s never done anything below average in his life. Except kanji. But then again, everyone has a vice of some kind. That’s what makes them human. And last she checked, Naru’s definitely human.

She thinks.

Or is he?

“Mai.”

That is also decidedly less fond. Almost, urgent? But why is Naru feeling urgent? That doesn’t make any sense. It does give him extra points though, since urgency implies care. Maybe she’ll rank this one as six out of ten. Perfectly average. Just like Naru isn’t.

She doesn’t hear her name fall from his lips again, but she does get a chance to _stare_ at said lips. Registering the hand on her shoulder and the very un-cold look in Naru’s eyes – what happened to his ice walls? – Mai tries to figure out why he’s staring at her like this.

“Naru?”

“Mai.”

Is this name-saying going to become a thing? Because Mai isn’t technically against it, but she figured he would be over it already.

“Mai, can you keep your eyes on me for a moment.”

She hasn’t even realised that her eyes had wandered. When had that happened?

Snapping them back to Naru, she tilts her head in a silent question.

His hand is still seeping warmth into her skin – and that is weird as well because it implies that she’s _cold_. It had been a hot day, over thirty degrees, which is a statistical anomaly, given that they’d only just hit _spring_. But as she’d told Naru earlier, Mother Nature didn’t _care_ if it is a statistical anomaly.

His lips had twitched when she’d said it, so Mai is sure that he’d found it at least a little amusing.

Mai feels her shoulder shake slightly. No, she isn’t shaking. That’s Naru’s fingers. _He_ is shaking.

That doesn’t seem right.

“Naru?”

“Mai.”

Okay seriously, _is_ this going to become a thing?

“Naru, what’s wrong?” She’s whispering, why is she whispering?

“Mai, I’m going to pull you into the base. Do you think you’ll be alright if I guide you there?”

_You can guide me anywhere,_ she doesn’t say, because that’s stupid. And corny. And sappy.

“Mai.”

They were back to urgent again.

“I’m not _actually_ an idiot, you know. Go ahead.”

“I’m beginning to wonder how true that is,” he responds blandly. But there’s no cold in it, no heart. He doesn’t really mean it.

She almost can’t tell they’re moving until Naru is pushing her forwards now, guiding her before him, almost like he’s trying to round her up. Or prevent her from turning around.

The temptation to turn around is right there, sitting on the edge of her consciousness like a small devil; encouraging her to do it. But Naru must be able to tell because the next words from his mouth are a request – “Please keep facing forwards.”

And just like that, the urge fades away. What is she so desperate to see, anyway?

It’s only a few steps to get into the base and the moment she enters, something doesn’t feel right. Or is it that something had felt wrong until she’d stepped inside the room?

Nothing makes sense anymore and Mai struggles to sort out her mind as Naru pushes her towards the couch. She’s forced to sit, and she goes pliantly.

Something is singing to her, warning her in the back of her mind again, and Mai struggles to understand what could be wrong.

_Masako-san. John-san. Ayako-san. Bou-san._

They pop into her mind, but they fade away just as quickly, their names like sand through her open fingers.

Faintly, she thinks she can hear someone apologising, but that doesn’t make any sense. What could they be apologising for?

And then the world starts to darken and there’s a moment when it all dawns on her before thought fades into the dark nothingness.

Mai is unsure of how long she’s asleep, but when she reawakens there’s a jacket on covering her form and no-ones in sight.

It’s silent in the room and her head is pounding something fierce. What had happened?

“Mai.”

Glancing over at the door, she smiles towards Naru. “What’s up?”

There’s something in the way he’s looking at her right now. Caution. But why? Did it have something to do with how it is now… seven in the morning? She’d lost half of a day?!

“What happened?” she asks, almost scared to hear the answer.

“You were possessed.” Is that guilt in his tone?

Groaning, Mai fights the urge to rub at her face. That explains the headache at least. “For how long? I can’t remember anything after lunchtime yesterday,” she admits. “There are flashes, but everything feels so far away.”

Naru’s lips twitch slightly. “Is that normal for you after being possessed?”

Mai hums, tilting her head. “Sort of? It depends on the spirit- Wait, don’t side-track me. What the heck _happened?_ ”

There’s a silent sigh and she fights the urge to get up and smack him. It is a perfectly reasonable question!

“I wasn’t completely honest with you.”

Eyebrows drawn tight; Mai tilts her head. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Hara-san and John-san weren’t just speaking in the room. Hara-san was channelling the spirit; speaking with it to try and get them to move on. During that time, I asked you to go and make some tea. Do you recall that?”

It hurts to think back -- her head pounding at the effort -- but Mai does her best. She has a vague recollection of the request, but it’s such a normality for her that she hadn’t taken major notice of it.

“Okay, and?”

“While you were making the tea, something happened with Hara-san and John-san. The spirit disappeared. Almost immediately after, when you returned to base, you were acting _off_. But none of us realised – it wasn’t until you asked after Hara-san and John-san that we realised something was wrong.”

“And what?”

There’s that guilty look again. It was well hidden, buried beneath layers of blue steel, but it bends easily to her will and she can tell.

It’s a moment before Naru answers her question. Mai thinks she’ll have to repeat it before he finally takes a deep breath and answers.

“Hara-san and John-san were out of the room, but they’d only been gone for fifteen minutes. I thought you’d just lost track of time or gotten confused. But you seemed absent, like you were agitated for some reason. So, I waited ten minutes and then sent Takigawa-san and Matsuzaki-san out of the room to test my theory. You seemed to get more anxious. I should’ve stopped and allowed John-san or Takigawa-san to exercise you then, but before I could make the request-”

“I bolted to the room upstairs. Only, they weren’t there,” Mai whispers, more to herself as the images flash in her mind. “I can barely remember any of that.”

Naru nods. “I figured that was the case. What worried them most was that they were right there. And you couldn’t see them.”

Her eyebrows knit together tighter and head pounds something fierce, but Mai combs through the memories that are resurfacing in an attempt to understand what Naru’s saying. “That can’t be.”

“But it is. They were trying to get your attention but no matter what, you wouldn’t respond to them. They tried shaking you, speaking with you, shouting. John even tried an exorcism. But the spirit would repossess you immediately after.”

“But,” Mai argues weakly as some memories continue to flicker in her mind, “ _you_ shook me. I _remember_ that. And I spoke with you as well. I remember that too.”

Naru nods again. “You did. But I was the only one you responded to. Lin tried again, after that first time, but you wouldn’t respond to him either. I’m not sure why that was- “

The urge to slam her head against a wall rises in Mai because she does know. It’s because she loves Naru. At least the ghost possessing her didn’t manage to make her spill that.

“-but we can figure that out at another point in time. Finally, we managed to get you inside the wards at base and John-san and Takigawa-san both exorcised you at the same time. Then Matsuzaki-san sedated you before it could repossess you. We finished the exorcism a few hours ago, but we were waiting for you to reawaken before we left.”

For the first time since waking up, Mai realises that he’s right. The entirety of the base has been packed up.

“Do we know anything about the ghost?” she asks finally.

Shaking his head, Naru sighs. “Not really. Even now, we don’t have a gender for the ghost, let alone a backstory. We were a little preoccupied with you.”

The crease between Mai’s eyebrows forms again at the reminder. There are so many memories rushing back to her, but she isn’t sure what she can trust. Is this what it’s like to feel as though you can’t trust your own mind? Because if it is then she is quite happy to be sane.

“It’s not your fault,” Mai says finally. She isn’t sure what possesses her to say it – hopefully not another ghost; one possession is enough for a day -- but she feels like it needs to be said.

And maybe that’s her instincts being spot on because Naru’s frowning in that way that usually tells her that he’s confused by something she’s said.

It’s a rare look, but a favourite.

“I should have known better than to send you to get tea during a time like that,” Naru disagrees.

Rolling her eyes, Mai’s arms lift to cross in front of her chest. “So, you made a mistake. It happens to everyone,” she says. “Get over it. You’re only human Naru. If it makes you feel better, you can apologise.”

He’s glaring at her now but Mai much prefers that over self-deprecation or guilt. “What good would that do? Saying sorry isn’t going to fix the situation,” he scoffs.

Snorting, Mai’s once more reminded of how out of touch Naru is emotionally. “You’re not wrong but feeling guilty definitely isn’t going to help anything either,” she points out.

Naru frowns at her again, confused once more. But this is the condescending-confused look; the one he gives her whenever she says something smart and he can’t comprehend it.

It’s one of her _least_ favourites.

“Fine.”

It isn’t an actual agreement, Mai knows, but it is something close, so she’ll take it. And the tension he’s been holding in his shoulders has lessened, so there is that.

“It’s so weird, I didn’t even know a possession could be like this,” she muses.

As intended, Naru’s focus switches from guilt to contemplation – the right side of his mouth is downturned and there’s more weight on his right leg, something he only ever did when in thought.

“It was something new for me as well,” he admits. “You were still yourself, but you were an absent version of yourself.”

It was scary, he doesn’t say, but Mai can hear it.

“Well, if anyone’s taking my vote, I say that we don’t go through it again. _I_ certainly didn’t enjoy the experience.”

Naru’s lips twitch into a small smile for just a brief moment. “I’ll take that into consideration when looking into ghosts for possession studies over the next few years.”

And instead of freezing at his joke, Mai only giggles. “You had better.”

**Author's Note:**

> If you enjoyed this fic, feel free to come and shout at me over at shellsan.tumblr.com, or leave a comment below~ There's also our (slowly growing!) gh discord if you want to join us over there as well, https://discord.gg/2wFPeRW.


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